‘3-1 would be ideal’: Pat Cummins ahead of final Ashes 2023 Test

Australia skipper Pat Cummins during a practice session at The Oval in London on Tuesday. Pic/Getty Images

Australia captain Pat Cummins insisted on Wednesday that his side remains hugely motivated to complete a long-awaited Ashes series win in England, even though they have already retained the urn. The tourists head into a fifth and final Test at The Oval starting Thursday, 2-1 up after last week's Old Trafford washout denied a dominant England the chance to claim a series-levelling win.

Australia's 22-year wait

Australia, as the holders, are assured of retaining the Ashes. But the goal of a first Ashes series win away to England since 2001, a run that spans five tours, remains in their sights. Fast bowler Cummins said the circumstances were different this time and that ending a 22-year wait for an Ashes series win in England would be the ideal way to finish a tour that started at The Oval with Australia's victory over India in the World Test Championship final.

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"I think the good thing is that it's a really similar group to 2019," Cummins told a pre-match press conference at The Oval on Wednesday. "It feels really different here. We know that it wasn't our best week last week and at the end of the game it was a bit of a pat on the back, ‘well done, we've retained the Ashes' but really it feels like the job's not done," said Cummins.

‘We missed a trick last time'

"That Manchester [in 2019] was a big win to retain the Ashes, which we hadn't done for a long time off the back of Headingley, even Lord's, where we probably missed a trick last series. I felt like that was a big exclamation mark on the end of that series with still one Test match to play. This group has been really motivated to win the series," he added.

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